Democrats just won their fourteenth special election since Donald Trump’s election—this time in Iowa. And frankly, they shouldn’t have. Republicans should have flipped House District 82 with their hands tied behind their proverbial backs.

This district not only went heavily for Donald Trump last November (58 percent), but it’s been trending away from Democrats over the past few election cycles. Obama took HD82 with 50 percent in 2012. In Tuesday’s special election, Democrat (and large animal veterinarian) Phil Miller defeated his Republican opponent 54-44 percent.

This hotly contested race took an ugly turn last month when the Republican started airing ads attacking Miller for his vote as school board president to preserve a policy allowing transgender students to use the bathroom for the gender with which they identify. Miller voted to uphold the policy (in accordance with both state and federal law). The spot was transphobic and terrible, but that’s not even the worst part.

The Republican began airing the ads just a month after a local transgender teen committed suicide. So it’s nice to see such a disgusting tactic backfire on the GOP. If tonight and last year’s North Carolina gubernatorial contest taught us anything, it’s that anti-transgender potty policing doesn’t win elections.

Not to give short shrift to a Democrat’s 30-point over-performance in a swing state, but Miller’s big win isn’t the only news of the night. Two more special elections were held in Missouri. Both House District 50 and Senate District 28 are solidly Republican seats: HD50 went for Trump 58-37 percent, and SD28 gave Trump 76 percent of the vote to Clinton’s 20.

Neither of these seats was legitimately considered competitive, and Republicans kept them in the red column. Nevertheless, the Democrats in these races performed astoundingly well. In HD50, the Democratic candidate garnered 48 percent, over-performing Clinton’s numbers by 17. In SD28, the 32 percent the Democrat brought in had her outperforming Democratic presidential numbers last fall by 19 percent.

Neither of these contests should have been close (and, to be fair, SD28 wasn’t). But the GOP win percentage in HD50 shifted from 21 percent to a mere four percent in just nine months—not a good look for a party hoping to hold on to swing districts in future elections.

Both the Democratic win in Iowa and the over-performances in Missouri provide additional data points supporting the irrefutable trend of Democratic success in special elections held since Trump’s election. Democrats have not only wrested four seats from Republicans, but they’ve also outperformed Democratic presidential numbers from just last fall in 24 out of 31 contested congressional and state legislative elections. Tuesday’s results bring Democrats’ improved performance average to 13 percent—sure to be an unlucky number for Republicans if they can’t improve their electoral fortunes this cycle.

_________________when good people stay silent the right wing are the only ones heard.

I never thought it would happen in my lifetime: Democrats in Delaware County have SWEPT ALL OF THE ROW OFFICES ON THE BALLOT!!! I cannot stress the importance — and the magnitude — of this victory. On a night when Democrats are making enormous strides across the country, *this* is one that should be shaking GOP leaders to their core.

THESE ARE THE *FIRST* COUNTY COUNTY-WIDE OFFICES HELD BY DEMOCRATS IN DELCO SINCE HOME RULE WAS ESTABLISHED IN 1976!!! DOMINANCE OF REPUBLICAN ONE-PARTY RULE IN THE COUNTY HAS COME TO AN EPIC END!

_________________when good people stay silent the right wing are the only ones heard.

Democrats gain total control over two more state governments with New Jersey and Washington

Virginia...the swamp. So they now control 38% of state governorships. Haha

yes difficult when the right wing have the oil trust fund kids like the Koch brothers who are responsible for spending 1 billion or so a year on elections, making sorros 100 million or less seem like chump change. And no dem has more than sorros.

And you look at how many ultra partisan right wingers in politics... The mercers (funding Trump) and on and on in the right wing.

amazing the dems can win anywhere with all the right wing trust fund money that is now dark money. dark money that the right wing fought for via citizens united so no trust fund kid or corporation has to disclose giving billion dollar bribes._________________when good people stay silent the right wing are the only ones heard.

The "tax cuts" debacle will tell the tale of 2018, and 2020...Should be good viewing, as many Rethugs are being forced to defend the tax hikes that most middle-upper earners will experience...Who would of thunk it, Drumpf is president, deficits don't matter, and higher taxes are good!

Remember this con job?

“Trump came in there to the factory last December and blew smoke up our asses,” Brenda Darlene Battle, a twenty-five-year Carrier employee, said. “He wasn’t gonna save those jobs.”

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